Five things which look great on a CV

If you’re determined to find a new job, the first step is to upgrade your CV so that it stands out among the flood of submissions that all great job postings generate. It may take a little homework and a lot of thought, but it will be worth it. Your CV is what begins your potential employer’s first impression of you. That is just one main reason why you want to make sure that it is great.

Here are five things which will look great on your CV.

Keywords

The average time spent by recruiters looking at a CV is five to seven seconds. That is why you need to make sure that yours stands out. Start by making sure that your CV is well organised and easy to read. Just by making it look as professional as possible you can be sure to get some attention. Also, hiring managers are looking for specific criteria. Also, most of them are doing online searches to locate candidates. Including the right keywords in a CV posted online will bring it to the attention of employers before you even know about the opportunity.

Numbers

Your experiences will make more of an impression if you back them up with hard data. Vague statements become concrete, quantifiable results. “Supervised 10 employees” is better than “supervisory role”, and “saved the company £5,000 per month” is better than “implemented cost-cutting measures”. It is also a good idea to include dates so that they have a timeline of what you can done. That is just proper and professional.

Titles

Don’t lie, but feel free to expand on those generic job titles. For instance, ‘HR Assistant’ could be augmented with a phrase like ‘Event Coordinator and New Hire Trainer’ if those were part of your responsibilities. Don’t write fiction, but by all means, make it interesting.

Skills and education

If you have specific training or experience, make sure you say so. If you’ve taken a course or gained a certification, include those. It is also essential that you never skimp on your educational background. A Masters in Reading, for instance, demonstrates a level of expertise at a skill that is advantageous in a wide variety of careers. No matter what level or type of education you have it can give you skills that will help you in any workplace.

Online profile

Create a LinkedIn or similar page where you can sell yourself. Don’t be afraid to brag a little. List any relevant professional or academic awards, accomplishments, or positions that reflect your personal knowledge and skills. Even non-professional achievements can have an impact, such as charity work. Include as many accomplishments on your CV as you realistically have room for, and top it off with a link to the online profile.

Because of the number of CVs received, 98 per cent of job-seekers don’t make it past the original CV screening Create a ‘template’ CV that includes all of the above, and tweak it to fit each job description you’re interested in. In order to make it past the first round of screenings, your CV should be neat, professional, and include some or all of the above elements to quickly capture attention.

Do you know any other things which look great on a CV? Tell us below.

Photo: Bruce Guenter / Flickr